The Real Deal Miami

TriStar spends a record $65M on Design District properties

Atlas Plaza, David Edelstein and a rendering of the completed building next door.

As prices continue to rise in Miami’s Design District, David Edelstein’s New York-based TriStar Capital has added three properties to its portfolio for a record $65 million, Miami-Dade County records show.

Russell Atlas sold the Atlas Plaza, home to Michael’s Genuine Food & Drink, Rolex, Longchamp, Trend by Sebastien James, and Markowicz Fine Art, among other tenants. The properties, at 114 Northeast 40th Street, 130 Northeast 40th Street and 135 Northeast 39th Street, are in the heart of the Design District.

Atlas’ Buena Vista Design Plaza LLC sold 130 Northeast 40th Street to PB3940 Short Term LLC for $35 million. The single-story, 10,297-square-foot property was built in 1969. On the same block, Magnolia Court sold 135 Northeast 39th Street, a 4,700-square-foot property, to Palm Beach Holdings 3940 LLC for another $15 million. Both sold for $795,000 in 2000, according to Miami-Dade property records.

He also sold 114 Northeast 40th Street, a 5,000-square-foot property, for $15 million to the same LLC. That building was recently completed. The buildings total 19,000 square feet and sit on 19,700 square feet of land. The buyers are all tied to TriStar.

“The Design District is fast becoming the most important luxury retail district in the world and we’re pleased to have purchased these unique assets in the heart of this iconic destination,” David Edelstein of TriStar Capital said in a statement. “This site has tremendous long-term growth and development potential and we are thrilled to be part of the neighborhood’s transformation.”

Lyle Chariff, president of Chariff Realty Group, was the exclusive leasing agent for the property. Chariff, who would not comment on the sale, said the most recent lease he arranged was for Italian jeweler Roberto Coin for $300 per square foot. He said the 650-square-foot lease is a “real indicator of the sale potential” of the property.

Prices in the area will continue to increase, Chariff said. “Properties will be flipped for substantially more money and that is in the works as we speak,” he told TRD. “Since I’ve been in the Design District for the last 15 years, the price changes historically occur in December during Art Basel.”